VR: Virtually a reality?

Virtual Reality will work in a way that 3D didn’t. That’s because VR and Augmented Reality have so many obvious and useful applications across a range of sectors from medicine to architecture to robotics.

A broad plane of development also means TV will benefit from not having to do all the production and workflow heavy lifting themselves. And then there is video games; if you like immersive gaming, then VR is the gift that keeps on giving.

So, VR TV is just a matter of time? Well, as discussed in the latest edition of Euromedia, even with help, the technical challenges in shooting, production, storage and transmission or not trivial – which is another way of saying that they will be expensive to overcome. And that means monetisation is imperative but it is not obvious how it will play out.

But, if the technical and monetisation challenges are overcome, VR will become a major part of the TV landscape? Maybe, maybe not. 3D didn’t work in part because you had wear glasses, and in part because it worked by tricking the brain over perspective – and a lot of people found that a headache, literally. VR also requires a headset and also can tend to have some unfortunate physical effects – one demo introduced me to vertigo for the first time, thanks for that.

And that’s without the ‘Where there’s blame there’s a claim’ lawyers just waiting to sue broadcasters and device makers when a user hurts themselves or someone else as they involuntarily react – or over react – to their VR experience.

So, VR is no 4K UHD, i.e., a nice big step forward in something straightforward and well understood. Its roadmap is complex and has undoubtedly a few dead ends lurking in it, but the journey has begun.